Life's Back Roads

Part 1

Doc never much liked delivering harsh news. He'd witnessed enough, suffered enough, to know the pain, and know he never wanted to share it with others. Treating patients, attempting to save patients, attempting to get them to a bigger hospital with the sheriff and singular firefighter's help. Failing.

And of course, his own near fatal crash when he was a racer all those years ago.

Hard lessons are rarely forgotten. Hard opinions were even worse to abandon.

And it was starkly Doc's opinion that Lightning did not need to know such news, nor did he enjoy the idea of breaking such news to the young adult.

He finds Lightning on the front steps to his and Sally's apartment round back the hotel they ran. It's where the man has been moping the past week since learning. With a groan Doc lowers himself to sit beside Lightning.

Lightning is hunched over, chin in one hand, playing with an already dusty Rusteze cap. He speaks first, not even looking up from his hat near the ground.

"How many races will you be there for?"

"You know I can't answer that." Doc narrows his eyes, leaning over to get a better look at the deprecating Lightning. Who's the one dying here?

Apparently both of them, one physically, the other emotionally.

Doc wouldn't allow that.

"You know, you ran off before I could give the good news." He leans back against the door to the apartment. "Now we're a week off schedule."

"The seasons over. There are no schedules."

"If you'd listen... Go inside and pack up some. Say for a month or so."

Lightning eyed Doc incredulously, wondering as to what the old man was up to.

"On you go, come on." Urged Doc patting Lightning on the back, who quirked a brow in further confusion but still complied. They stood and Lightning made his way into his apartment as Doc set off.

Lightning hoped to God this wasn't some press tour that Doc was trying to get him to go on. He had no enthusiasm for such an exertion. After all his racing, winning the Piston Cup, trying to stomach the whole reason Doc's been having trouble with more exercise related tasks and the constant down pour the last week left him exhausted. He was physically and mentally drained. If he could sleep he'd be spending his days in bed instead of on his doorstep watching clouds roll by.

Wherever it was Doc wanted him to go, it must not have been related to his career, because instead of waiting for him, or hearing Mack's truck pull up, he heard the idle breathing of an all too familiar Hornet. He glanced out his front room window as he hefted up a suitcase to see Doc popping his vehicles trunk and leaning against a rear fender.

Lightning sighed and left his house, dropping his luggage into the trunk of the Hornet. He simply glowered at Doc as the elder held open the passenger door for him. He barely noticed Doc entering on the drivers side and shifting the car into first gear.

They rolled around to the front of the cafe.

"First up, were stopping at the wheel well, so you can say bye. You ain't gonna see Sally for a while."

Lightning slouched down and lounged his feet on the cars dashboard. "Why don't you get straight with me and tell me where we're going? Or it's kidnapping."

"Your an adult. Besides, I don't want you spending your whole off season moping about me. Consider it a roadtrip."

Lightning only pouted, looking sidelong out the window. "How many races are you going to miss?"